UPDATED: Townley To Return At Martinsville

John WesTownley

Sirius XM NASCAR Radio’s Sirius XM Speedway with Dave Moody has learned that John Wes Townley will return to the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series at Martinsville Speedway next weekend.

NASCAR announced Thursday that Townley had been placed on probation until Dec. 31, 2012, in the aftermath of a Feb. 7 highway crash in which he crashed his 2012 BMW into a telephone pole. Townley was charged with DUI; his second alcohol-related incident in the last two years. He had previously been cited for underage possession of alcohol in February of 2007 in Las Vegas. He was suspended by his NCWTS team; RAB Racing on February 10, and did not take part in the season opener at Daytona International Speedway.

"We have stood by our commitment to John Wes Townley, and supported him as he has worked through fulfilling what sanctions we've placed on him internally, as well as the process that NASCAR has instituted that allows him first, to return to the seat of our Toyota Tundra, and second, to compete on a weekly basis," said Robby Benton, owner of RAB Racing with Brack Maggard. "It was an unfortunate situation that occurred, and a mistake was made. We now look towards the future and building on a lesson learned. We will work closely with NASCAR and their programs as he returns to full-time competition in the Camping World Truck Series."

"I want to send my deepest apologies to NASCAR, RAB Racing, my fans, sponsors, family, and friends," said Townley. "I made a terrible mistake, but I am now ready, having a renewed relationship with God in my life, to move forward making better decisions. Martinsville will be the start of a new chapter in my life, in more ways than one. My future actions will demonstrate where my heart is, and that I am on a mission."

As conditions of his NASCAR probation, Townley may be evaluated by a certified substance abuse professional at the discretion of the sanctioning body, and is subject to random alcohol and drug testing.